Definitely Acquired: Cantonese Children's Acquisition of Definiteness
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Date
2024-11
Authors
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Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Ohio State University. Libraries
Abstract
This study aims to assess Cantonese-speaking children’s ability to express definiteness through classifiers in an adult-like manner. Despite the fact that Cantonese lacks determiners, as shown by the NP/DP and nominal mapping parameters, scholars claim that Cantonese can still achieve several functions of determiners through classifiers, and that bare classifiers [Cl+N] specifically are capable of expressing definiteness, similar to English’s the. Past studies have shown that English-speaking children exhibit sensitivity to definiteness through the at ages 1-3. We claim that there is likewise the existence of early-age sensitivity to definiteness in Cantonese-speaking children, and that there is support for Cheng and Sybesma’s claim that bare classifiers in Cantonese are comparable to definite articles in English.
Description
Keywords
L1 acquisition, definiteness, bare classifier
Citation
Chow, Ian and Snyder, William. "Definitely Acquired: Cantonese Children's Acquisition of Definiteness." Buckeye East Asian Linguistics, vol. 9 (November 2024), p. 22-31.